Navneet Sharma
MD India and Middle East
Total Sports Asia

A confident and effervescent person who loves his job and life. That is the best way to describe Navneet Sharma. It was his passion for sports that led him to choose a career in sports marketing. "Since childhood I always wanted to represent India internationally in sports. I played junior basketball and squash on the circuit in college. In school, I played junior hockey. But I could never figure out which one to target. Sports remained in my heart. I felt that if I could not play sports then I should work in an industry that is related to sports. I could represent sports people."

He recalls that his first job was managing Leander Paes career in Kolkata. "For the last 16 years I have only worked in the media industry. I worked for six years in Kolkata and then I shifted base to Delhi. I was part of Sterling Grand. I then worked at IMG managing people like Anil Kumble and Ajay Jadeja. To me, it is important to do something that I like. This is how I have evolved," says Navneet.

A Spiritual Person: "I am a spiritual person and by that I don't mean religious. I believe in a super power and the concept of energy that Deepak Chopra talks about. I believe in Yoga and I practise it.

There is a reason for everything in life: I am both an emotional person and an intuitive person. I believe that there is a reason why everything exists in life. There is a reason for everyone's story in life. There is a story happening for all of us and if you open yourself, you can see a connection with other people's stories.

My wife is the person behind me: My family is very important. My parents and in-laws have always been there for me. Having said that, from the time I was in college I have been out of the house. I am a self made guy and even did my college admissions on my own. My wife Jessica has been the main person behind me. She pushes me to take risks, which at times are not calculated. In the bargain, we have suffered but I believe that the hard times have led to better times. We now take risks that are calculated. My wife and daughter - Melissa are everything to me.

A preference for non fiction books: I read a lot. Earlier I used to read many a books on marketing. Now the focus has shifted to life improvement books. I like to read Deepak Chopra, yoga books and biographies. You can correlate it with exciting things that are happening. Once in a while I do read a work of fiction but I prefer the other books, which deal more with life chemistry than with anything else. Fiction is good but it is also artificial. I have around 200 books. I used to buy at least four to five books every month but now because of my busy schedule I buy around two books each month.

An aversion to partying: I do not party much. I do entertain people but for me after 10 pm it's family time. Usually, people get surprised by this because they expect people in my line of work to party a lot. I also spend time on my own and I do tend to be a loner at times.

Films are for entertainment: I like to watch masala Hindi films. I like thrillers and comedies. I don't like the serious stuff anymore. Films for me now are pure entertainment. I don't learn much from them.

I prefer cars to gadgets: While I have a lot of gizmos and gadgets, I am not technologically savvy. I like cars. I have always wanted to own a Hummer. I like SUVs more than luxury cars. Gizmos for me are related to work. So if I have a blackberry, it is because I need to be reached.

Not much time spent in shopping malls: My wife hates to shop with me because I am very specific and I don't like to roam in malls. I don't like to bargain and I am out of the mall in five to 10 minutes. This is where my wife and I differ. I would rather spend time playing basketball or swimming.

Personal goals: I am still aggressive and I have clearly laid down milestones that I want to reach. One of the things was to move to an international market and I have done that now. The other one is that in five to six years time I want to be financially more secure. I want to own a home in Dubai and I want to spend more time with my family, which I haven't done over the past three to four years. My most important goal is to help people in whatever way I can.